Chapter Two - Farewell, My Dear Family
Vin usually liked to spend his time waking up. Curled softly under the comfort of a thick set of sheets and blankets, letting the warm, bright sun slowly lull him from his slumber; perhaps even sneaking in a few cheeky moments of rest while he was at it. Usually, that's how he would wake up, and to him there was a comfort to that: a peace that came with that style of waking up, whether it was at noon on a weekend, or seven in the morning for school.
If that was his favorite way of waking up, then this was, by far, his least favorite. Instead of waking up surrounded by sun, it was harsh artificial light bulbs. Instead of curling up under warm covers, it was being cuffed by his hand and feet to a massive surgery table, his limbs trapped in massive metal cases bolted to the board where he leaned. Instead of being able to slowly adjust to the world of the waking world by drifting in and out of sleep, he was immediately greeted by a woman clad in robes of some sort.
It was coming back to him… Oh, right, wasn't this the woman who had knocked his ass out when he was freaking out? That was really comforting...
"Welcome back to the world of the waking, Mr. Corsetti," The woman greeted, "I assume you may have a few questions?"
Yes, Vin had several questions. And by several, he meant hundreds. Yet when he tried to voice them, he encountered another observation.
He was wearing a mechanical muzzle of some sort. Wow, he sure was feeling the love right now: he discovers he has superpowers, finds Irina and Xenovia have some sort of cosplay thing going on at the church, and now he's being treated like Hannibal-fuckin'-Lector.
The woman seemed to realize his rapidly mounting uneasiness, and calmly raised a hand.
"I understand that you may be experiencing some discomfort at the moment, but for the sake of both our safety and yours, we need to keep you like this for a little while. At least until we're done explaining things, alright?" The woman smiled.
If she was waiting for a response, she was going to be disappointed. At the very least, Vin sighed, and tried his best to shift and get comfortable. Apparently, she took that as enough of a que, and started. Her hands found a manila folder on the table in front of her, which she flipped open in her hands.
"Mr. Corsetti, during our encounter, you displayed a rather peculiar ability, you seemed to generate crystals of some sort, upon review, it seemed that the creation of these crystals were tied to the motions of your arms."
Oh my god, Vin was going to be so angry if this ended with him getting probed, because he didn't know if he was still in Italy, or Area 51. And if the way this conversation was going was any indication, he was almost tempted to lean towards the latter. Well, if he could lean right now, but that's besides the point.
"Now, I want to clear a few things up for you, Mr. Corsetti, but I must warn you that what's going to be said is all one-hundred percent true, despite how it may sound… fictitious."
Oh boy, here we go.
"Mr. Corsetti, I won't lie to you. You have just stumbled into a world that we try to keep very hidden from regular people like you, but now it's the kind of world you are stuck in for the rest of your life."
Oh, that's not ominous.
"Mr. Corsetti, what if I told you that the supernatural do in fact exist?"
Vin's eyes widened. Really? Like, ghosts and shit? Vin took a deep breath, and shook his head. Yeah, no. He was willing to believe a lot, but he drew the line at ghosts.
The woman raised a brow, "You deny the supernatural's existence? I understand. From your profile, it seems like you're a very practical man. High marks in the sciences, looking into a future as a mechanical engineer, a complete atheist. You're the type of person who needs to be exposed to something tangible to be proved of its existence, correct?"
Oh great, they had a file on him, a creepily personal file too.
"But, isn't your ability enough tangible evidence, Mr. Corsetti?"
Vin's breath hitched. Oh fuck, she was right.
"You see, Mr. Corsetti, this world you've wandered into has been selling a lie to everyone for a countless amount of time. Religion, folklore, legends, stories... they conceal more truth than you may think."
The woman rested her forearms on the table, "Biblical gods exist, Mr. Corsetti. Angels, Devils, Yokai, all of these creatures are real, tangible, albeit hidden races. Now, with that in mind, I think it's time to switch gears to talking about how this all affects you."
The woman reached into her robes, and pulled out a remote of some kind. After pressing multiple buttons on the controller, the mechanical muzzle attached to Vin's face hissed, and fell down to the floor with a clatter. Soon after came his arm cuffs, and then his legs.
"Come, sit down over her, Mr. Corsetti," The woman gestured to a chair sitting across from her.
Rubbing his wrists, Vin limped over to the chair, hissing quietly as his bruised body made contact with the cold steel seat.
"Your 'superpower' that you've displayed is something that appears in a very rare number of humans, called a Sacred Gear. These are abilities gifted from God, and bestowed upon humans. There's multiple different known classifications of Sacred Gears, and each one has different abilities. Do you remember the rings you had on your fingers?"
"Uh yes…" Vin looked down, before his eyes widened, "What? Did you guys take them?"
The woman smirked, as if amused, "No, we haven't taken them, they simply dematerialized. Each Sacred Gear physically manifests in different ways when used. For you, it's those rings."
"Oh, I… um… I see," Vin said dumbly.
"I know a lot of what's been said is heavy, and a lot's been left out for the sake of not overwhelming you with details. Do you have any questions you'd like to ask? No matter how illogical you may think them to be, I would be more than happy to answer to the best of my abilities."
"...Uh, sure. Let's see."
Vin pondered for a moment.
"Oh! So, what was up with Irina and Xenovia wearing all those costumes, and why did they have swords?"
To give the lady credit, her reaction was limited to a single amused eyebrow raise.
"Well, to give you a proper answer, I should likely introduce myself," The woman stood up, pulling down the hood of her robes to reveal her azure eyes and dirty-blonde hair.
The woman extended her hand, "My name is Griselda Quarta: high-ranking exorcist of the church and the forces of Heaven."
Vin slowly shook her hand, "Uh… Vincenzo Corsetti: high ranking… high schooler? Ah, call me Vin: Mr. Corsetti is my Dad."
Griselda retracted her hand, to cover her mouth as she gave a light titter of a little laugh.
"Very good, Vin. It's important to have humor at a time like this."
Vin scratched the back of her neck awkwardly, surprised a little at how cute Griselda's laugh was, "Thank you, Ms. Quarta- Oh! Xenovia!"
Griselda nodded, "My ward. A wonderful girl, I teach her and Irina. Both are hoping to become exorcists, and with a little more time, I'm sure they will."
"That explains the records…" Vin mumbled.
"I'm sorry, I beg your pardon. What 'records'?"
"Um, Xenovia holds pretty much every record in the school for anything physical. She's even been unofficially declared the strongest girl in school because of her weightlifting record."
"Oh? This is the first time I've ever heard of any of this. Usually with Xenovia, it's training-this, training-that, so I admit, I do somewhat want to indulge in this knowledge. What was her record, if you know."
Vin put a finger to his chin, "Hmmm… Maybe around 510 pounds, if I'm not mistaken."
Griselda giggled.
"Um, is there a problem?"
"Oh no, not at all. I was just amused because 510 pounds is nowhere close to how much she can actually lift."
Vin paled, "What."
"Oh yes, I tell my students to hold back, but it seems like her 'holding back' is still quite eye-catching."
"Um, dare I ask what her usual record is?"
"I'd say about 800 pounds is the usual we put her at for bench-pressing."
Vin thought back to the one teenager brave enough to say he wanted the school's strongest girl to step on him, and silently prayed that they would never get that wish. Not to spite him, but to save him from getting his nether regions destroyed by a girl who could casually press 800 pounds.
"Alright, any other questions, Vin?"
"Oh! Rizzo, what happened to him?"
"He's innocent as far as we're concerned," Griselda answered, "He can still live a normal life, so we erased his memories of last night, and let him go. For all he knows, he just did his job as usual last night, and then went home."
Griselda sighed, "Unfortunately, that same courtesy doesn't extend to you, Vin."
Vin looked up, shocked, "What do you mean? Can't you just erase my memories too, and then I can go home, live without knowing about any of this?"
Griselda shook her head, "No, I'm sorry Vin, but once a Sacred Gear is awoken, it's stuck with you for life. And as long as you have a Sacred Gear, you're going to attract danger; not just to yourself, but potentially your family. It's crucial to sever the connection between you and your family as soon as possible, before anyone who might look to exploit you finds out."
"That's…"
"It's a rational line of thinking, Vin. It's happened to people before."
"So I don't have much of a choice, huh?"
"I'm afraid not, Vin. As we speak, people are setting up your transfer here, your family are currently under the pretense that you're attending a special camp for mechanical engineering. But after you say your last goodbyes, we're going to wipe any record of your connection to the rest of the Corsetti family. They won't remember you, your teachers won't remember any connection between you and your family, and all your legal documents will be altered to reflect that. All that would be left is for you to choose a new last name."
Vin stayed silent for a while, looking down and not making a peep. Minutes passed, before he looked up from his lap with eyes that looked a little more tired, a little more dead.
"Alright. What time is it?" Vin asked, his voice a little hoarser than earlier.
Griselda reached into her robes, producing a phone.
"5:00 in the afternoon. It's a Saturday, so everyone should still be up."
"Is there anything you need to confirm before you can take me to my family?"
Griselda offered a small, sad smile, "No, you being with me is enough. We're all set to go whenever."
"Well then," Vin stood up slowly, his body shaking, "Let's go, shall we?"
The rest of the car ride was spent in silence, with Griselda sitting beside Vin in the back seats of a moving van, while a random Vatican worker drove up front.
No words were exchanged, Griselda offered no sympathies aside from the occasional sad smile, and a firm, but caring hold on Vin's hand the entire half-hour trip. A gesture not ignored by the distraught, yet concerningly-reserved boy.
Soon enough, the telltale squeak of the vehicle's brakes sounded out, as the car pulled to a stop in the driveway of the Corsetti household. All three left the van, and walked up to the door. The worker stood in front of the two, and rang the doorbell.
Just as fast as the doorbell rang, it opened to reveal Vin's mother standing in the doorway.
"Ah! Hello, you must be the workers from the camp! Oh come in, come in."
Once they all stepped into the house, Vin's vision began to swim. Even as they moved throughout the house, he couldn't tell how much time was passing. All his brain could comprehend was the reminders of his family decorating the walls, and just how empty everything was going to feel when his pictures were going to be gone from that wall, and how the next morning, his family was going to wake up, and not think for a moment about the son that they lost overnight.
He wanted to cry, he wanted to scream, but nothing was coming out. At one point, he felt a familiar burning in his fingers; and upon looking down, was greeted with the sight of the rings, his Sacred Gear manifesting on his hands once more. Could he fight? Could he beat back the church, tell his family the truth, and fight to keep them safe? The hypotheticals began to flood his mind, until a sudden pressure encapsulated his left hand, ceasing his rampant thoughts. As he looked over to find Griselda giving his hand a squeeze.
Slowly, the rings twinkled, until they disappeared once more. From then on out, Griselda would occasionally squeeze his hand, anchoring Vin back into the present, until eventually, the family was gathered in the kitchen.
"Just let me know when you're done, and I'll do it, alright?" Griselda whispered.
"Guys…" Vin croaked, before his voice caught.
Squeeze. Vin took a breath.
"Guys, I'm sorry… I… I have to leave, for a long time… And, and when I-"
Squeeze. Breath.
"When I walk out that door, n-none of you guys are going to be able to remember me anymore. I- I just-"
Squeeze. Breath.
His family looked at him with various expressions: confusion, sympathy, worry.
His father finally chimed in, "Kiddo, what's the problem? You… you look like you're going to cry."
And cry he did, raising his head to the ceiling, Vin sniffled as a few stray tears made their way out.
"F-fuck, I can't take this…" Vin rasped, as he wiped and pinched his eyes with his free hand.
Squeeze. Breath.
Vin returned his gaze to his family, "I love you guys. I-I'm going to come back one day. One day, I'm going to be strong; strong enough to share a life with you guys again. And when that happens, then we can truly become a family again, ok?"
"B-Big Bro…" Lisa looked up at him, eyes scared, small, terrified… "What's happening?"
It nearly broke him to see those eyes.
"Goodbye guys," Vin shakily smiled through pouring tears, before he looked down to the ground, shaking.
"Do it."
And in a bright flash of light, the Corsetti family fell unconscious.
Griselda gave Vin's hand another squeeze, and finally spoke up.
"They won't wake up for another twelve hours," Griselda explained, "Sister Dorothy has already loaded all the things from your room into the van. Is there anything else here that you want to bring?"
Vin nodded, as Griselda finally let go of his hand, and walked out of the room. Coming back not ten seconds later with a large cardboard moving box in her hands.
"Let's get packing, then. I'll help you."
Vin couldn't bring himself to smile, so he simply nodded his head.
In the end, the two managed to gather up a variety of things; from the few game systems in the house, to movies, records, and books purchased by and for Vin. And at the very end, the most agonizing process: taking every photo that contained Vin from the various walls in the house, each and every frame going neatly into the same box, stacked in rows like books on a shelf.
In the end, it took them around three hours to fully pack everything that had anything to do with Vin that was worth keeping. Soon enough, the three piled back into the now-full van, and headed back towards the Vatican.
It was about three-quarters of the way back when Griselda finally addressed the elephant in the room.
"Dare I say, you've taken this… much better than I thought you would have."
Vin stared out the window at the passing houses through the van's tinted windows
"I'm not taking this well, Ms. Quarta," A single tear twinkled down Vin's cheek.
Griselda returned to looking ahead, "I see…"
Once they reached the Vatican, Griselda directed Vin out of the van, before it drove off.
"They're going to unpack your stuff into your room. You'll have to unbox everything else yourself, but they can at least make you a bed for later. In the meantime, I'm going to show you how to get around here, and get to your new quarters."
Silently, Vin followed Griselda around the Vatican. Memorizing the way around the halls, until they reached an elevator.
"Come, step inside Vin," Griselda instructed.
Once the two were in the elevator, Griselda pressed the 'close doors' button, and instead of going to press a floor button, Griselda instead reached into her robes, and produced a set of keys, handing them over to Vin.
"Alright, these are vital for getting around here. You see this panel here?" Griselda gestured towards a locked plate under the elevator's buttons, "You use your key labelled as 'E' on this panel right here, come, you try."
Vin walked up, and after finding the key marked as 'E', inserted it into the lock, twisting it to reveal a keypad and screen.
"Depending on where you want to go, you type in the code for that floor. The main one you'll have to remember is '4826', which is the floor code for the dorms and living quarters. We shall head there now."
So, Vin punched in the code, locked the cabinet door, and sure enough, the elevator began to descend past what was labelled as the ground floor. Eventually the door to the elevator opened, and revealed a hallway with a door on each wall. One labelled as 'Training', One labeled as 'Pool', and the final on the far wall labelled as 'Dormitories'.
Griselda led Vin along to the far door, before turning to face Vin.
"There's nothing to be afraid of, Vin. Everyone here is around your age; and while some can certainly be called… eccentric, rest assured they're all good people."
"Now, welcome to your new home Vin," Griselda smiled, before she pushed open the door.
Hey Everyone! I just wanted to say a few things at the end right here. First of all, thank you so much to everyone whose read this story so far, and an extra special thanks to those of you who left a favorite or a review. You guys make everything worth it so much more, and really help to motivate me to continue to write consistently! This project is a labor of love for the DxD community and fandom, and all the wonderful people in it. My main goal with this story is to give people subversions of what they expect in a DxD fanfiction. Proper grammar and sentence structure, who I hope will become an interesting and grounded OC protagonist, and most of all, just a fun story for you all to read and enjoy. I really want to flesh out this story, and have some interesting ways to have it tie into canon, while still being able to have some fun with wacky premises while I'm at it. Thanks again for all the support, make sure to favorite and leave a review if you feel so inclined, and I'll see you guys again soon!
